Chapter 112: Chapter 112: Kidnapping (1)

Duke Brusek and his adjutant quietly rendezvoused in a city near the imperial capital.

Given the gravity of the situation, even he, the Chief of Intelligence, had to move stealthily with heavy footsteps.

“He killed the empress in that dangerous situation…”

Of course, the incident that deviated from the plan also dealt a major shock to the Haisen Intelligence Agency.

As the Duke, his head was just as perplexed.

“He must have learned something in the process of killing the leader.”n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

“I think the same.”

“The empress was probably co-opted too. Since Derek was the contact, it would have been easy to turn the empress.”

The adjutant nodded heavily at the reasonable inference. In other words, Carlyn’s actions were for the sake of Haisen.

For the duke, it relieved his worries.

The duke was half convinced. Initially shocked, the more he thought about it, the more it made sense.

How grateful he was? The duke felt indescribable gratitude towards Carlyn.

‘Come to think of it, it’s amazing. To have survived a battle with the Sword Master afterward…’

In fact, even Haisen couldn’t know the full details right away, as Rudehrn couldn’t announce that he had been deceived in the empire.

The only short explanation was that Rudehrn overwhelmed Carlyn, but he used a cunning trick to escape.

Still, having survived a batttle with the Sword Master was an incredible feat.

He could well be called a future Sword Master.

‘There are so many Sword Master candidates that it’s hard to even remember their names.’

But not all Sword Master candidates are truly skilled. Many are just nominally titled for personal and national prestige.

The Sword Master candidate Carlyn killed in the war with the West was also someone more renowned than skilled.

That’s why having survived a fight against a real Sword Master was undeniable proof.

Even for Haisen, it was astounding. Though there was more than one thing to be shocked about in this situation.

“Was he hiding his skills, or no, ‘hiding’ wouldn’t be an appropriate expression.”

“Yes. Since he reported his duel with the Sword Master, it seems he has grown far beyond our imagination.”

The duke felt a deep regret that he didn’t send someone else. Of course, it was just a passing thought.

If it wasn’t Carlyn, Haisen would have been in danger. There was only one part he didn’t understand.

“The Devil’s Blood… you saw it too, right?”

“Yes. He was clearly not his usual self. His eyes were red and his demeanor was ominous.”

“Hmm.”

The duke recalled Carlyn’s words from the past. He had said he didn’t remember his past.

Could it have been a lie?

To think Carlyn was a devil worshipper seemed unlikely given his actions had been for Haisen’s benefit.

It was Carlyn who uncovered the lead about devil worshippers in the North, and he had no reason to cooperate with Phiri.

It was certain the leader had defected, so he should have hindered Haisen on the leader’s side instead.

In other words, Carlyn couldn’t be on the devil’s side. There was nothing for him to gain by such deception.

‘It doesn’t add up. We must have just not known.’

The duke couldn’t be 100% sure, but he thought his reasoning was accurate.

It made more sense that his unknown bloodline had activated while fighting the devil-worshipper leader.

He had seemed extraordinary from the first time he saw him, so what kind of blood did he inherit?

The duke quickly refocused his wandering thoughts.

Instead, he gazed heavily at his adjutant. The shadow’s eyes seemed to waver as they looked back at him.

In fact, the shadow’s heart was beating faster than usual.

‘Something’s up.’

Carlyn had moved faster than planned. The duke had thought he might too,

given his extraordinary mind, there was no way he wouldn’t have contingency plans.

But there was something off about the adjutant’s demeanor.

After so many years together, the duke could clearly sense the signs.

“It seems a little odd that you acted ahead of the plan.”

“…”

“Did you do anything beyond my orders?”

“My apologies.”

The adjutant bowed his head. The duke motioned for him to speak with his eyes.

“I laid a trap along the escape route. As a potentially serious threat to Haisen…”

The duke stared coldly down at his adjutant.

“Did I ever order you to act on your own thoughts?”

“No, you did not.”

“When did I ever say you could move independently?”

Excessive loyalty breeds mistakes. The duke was well aware of this.

He took a deep breath. A bitter taste seemed to linger on the tip of his tongue.

‘I’ve gotten old too.’

He had failed at managing his tool. He had trusted this tool he had been honing for so long a bit too much.

But it was too valuable a tool to discard after all the effort invested in raising it. Especially since he had now lost Carlyn.

To be fair, the adjutant’s judgment wasn’t entirely wrong either. The duke might have made the same decision if it wasn’t Carlyn.

But to the duke, Carlyn was the most precious tool above all else.

“Did Carlyn seem to catch on?”

“…He may have gotten wise to it.”

If it was him, he definitely caught on. Oh dear. The duke clicked his tongue.

It was an unfavorable situation. He had intended to bring him back under control once things settled down.

It would also be difficult for him to make contact first, with the empire’s tight surveillance.

Finding out where he went was another issue.

With the empress gone, the shadow adjutant had many places to be utilized.

“If you meet him again, be prepared to offer your life in apology. For he is the one who will succeed me.”

“…Pardon?”

The adjutant asked in surprise.

But this series of statements had the great effect of steeling the duke’s resolve.

From the time the plan was made, Carlyn had shown his thoughts aligned with the duke.

Moreover, in that perilous moment, despite sensing signs of betrayal, he had acted for Haisen’s sake.

To have survived the fight against Rudehrn at such a young age, all the more so.

He had to bring him back the moment the empire’s surveillance eased up. He was a talent to be nurtured.

The duke felt his own aging. It was time to prepare for succession.

Of all the youths he had raised, Carlyn was the best.

“Isn’t he amazing? In the midst of suspecting our betrayal, he still killed the empress. Where in the Intelligence Agency is there such a patriot?”

“But his face has already been exposed across the continent, has it not?”

“The Chief of Intelligence need not appear publicly. I can install a proxy with a noble title.”

At the duke’s firm words, the adjutant bowed his head.

“As for your punishment, that will suffice. From now on, your life and death lies in Carlyn’s hands.”

“Yes, I will obey his words.”

Suddenly, a thought flashed in the duke’s mind. What if he could utilize Hepate now?

The current Imperial Intelligence Agency was reeling under the emperor’s wrath.

If he painted a picture that an internal whistle-blower had brought about this crisis… Hepate could make a comeback.

The emperor might even grant him real authority. It would benefit Haisen too.

Through this incident, the duke had realized that the devil worshippers were targeting the princess.

Hepate would make a good protective shield.

‘I should give it some thought.’

It was just an idea that had occurred to him, not fully fleshed out, but a huge boon if successful.

He didn’t fully trust Hepate, but he was better than a stranger.

That is, if used well, he could establish a cooperative relationship with the empire against those devilish cultists.

[You gain Stratagem experience. Stratagem level becomes 12. You acquire the ‘Empress’ Slayer’ and ‘Cunning Saboteur’ traits.]

Yes, of course it would level up. To be honest, it hadn’t been too long since reaching level 11, so I had my doubts.

But just think about what I accomplished last night.

I assassinated the named double agent empress and survived the pursuit of a Sword Master quite luckily.

Even if the battle with Rudehrn doesn’t count as a Stratagem, considering the experience boosts from the traits I’ve accumulated, it makes sense to level up.

Empress’ Slayer is self-explanatory, and Cunning Saboteur probably came from hindering the devil worshippers’ schemes.

Gaining two traits was an unexpected bonus too.

‘Well, they were events weighty enough to not be considered just one.’

It wasn’t too long ago that I hit level 10 while making a name as Chenarus’ assassin.

An experience gain impossible in the game. It meant the deeds I pulled off in the capital carried great weight.

After securing lodging, a meal, and a bath, a sense of emptiness washed over me.

I was left wondering where to go next.

My original escape route was to the east.

The plan had been geared towards that direction too. But to head east now would be suicidal.

I had to rethink the plan from scratch. As I pondered, the nun from the southwestern region suddenly came to mind.

Since she was a seer, maybe she could shed some light on the path ahead.

‘Is this the mindset that drives politicians and businessmen to consult spiritualists before major events?’

Hmm. Let’s put that on hold for now. There are people to recruit in the West too.

The issue was that the information I had was about future events.

The game’s starting point was still four years away. Not that it was a bad thing.

It just gave me more time to prepare. I had even wished to fast-forward time a bit while playing the game.

Hmm. On second thought, it wasn’t much of a problem.

Unless they were wandering mercenaries, most of them would still be in those cities.

In this medieval fantasy world, it’s not so easy for people to just up and leave for another city.

Still, to completely shake off pursuit, I had to at least leave imperial territory and head west for now.

‘I should be able to meet Rodri.’

The duke told me to contact him on my own, but it’s best to postpone contact with Haisen for as long as possible.

I had just shaken off the leash, no need to put it back on myself.

In any case, communication would be difficult for a while.

The imperial side must be dedicating significant efforts to monitoring Duke Brusek.

I had no intention of completely cutting ties with Haisen despite leaving.

Assets like Denif, Cedric, and Phiri would be needed in the war against the devil worshippers.

‘Especially Denif and Cedric.’

The best case would be for me to form my own organization and cooperate with Haisen as an equal.

Hmm. They might see me as a traitor over there though.

The next best option is to feel things out, form my own organization, and then rejoin Haisen.

Being inside Haisen while having my own organization to deploy as needed would work.

Well, since the future can change, that’s enough pondering the immediate concerns for now.

‘Right. Since I’m headed west, I might as well meet Rodri.’

The reason I want to meet Rodri, despite him being a Haisen affiliate, is because now is the opportune time.

After the war between the empire and the West ended, the West plunged into civil war again.

There were rebellions everywhere after King Rohalak unified it, only to then lose to the empire.

Caught up in that chaos, most of the affiliate organizations Haisen had planted were wiped out.

Between Rohalak’s unification war, the war with the empire, and the current civil war – any able-bodied men joined King Rohalak’s army or died.

That’s why Rodri ended up in the western isles, losing contact with Haisen along the way.

‘If Rodri successfully takes control of the isles, he’s unlikely to reestablish contact.’

It would be strange for the ruler of the sizable western isles to remain a Haisen-affiliated organization.

It’s better for me to make separate overtures before that happens.

If Rodri is in the process of taking over the isles like in the game…

I can offer aid and redefine our relationship separately. We did become friends last time too.

And there were a few other people that came to mind.

People I had made sure to recruit on this side. If the timing matched, I could start getting acquainted early.

Suddenly, a thought flashed in my mind.

Isn’t this around the time Aron the Rabid from Shorendsun would be in the West region?

That poor, deranged fellow.

Author's Thoughts

Want to read ahead of the scheduled release? You can check the Novel page on the website (or press the next chapter button) and buy an advanced chapter with only 20 Honeys! (100 Honeys is only 5$! So you can basically read 5 advanced chapters ahead of schedule!)